A Brighter Age
by RorickTrevelyan
Summary: A happy fluffy announcement between Rorick Trevelyan and Cassandra. Rated M for language but it's not that bad. Reviews are appreciated.


_A Brighter Age_

"You know, when we built a house in the wilderness of Ferelden after we got married, I had hoped that we would have more privacy." Cassandra said quietly. Some of their friends had dropped by for a visit. After tracking them down. Unannounced. But they brought liquor.

"As did I." Rorick admitted. The Iron Bull grabbed him into a conversation and gave him more drinks. He slipped away again and found her alone. Her arms were crossed and her head was down. "Are you feeling okay?"

"I am fine." She said.

"Cassandra?" Rorick asked with an eyebrow raised. "You know what happened the last time you said you were fine."

"Varric forgave me." She said with a smirk. "But in truth I am doing well, I was frustrated because I wanted to talk to you." She looked as Sera hid quite badly behind a couch. "Alone." Rorick nodded and kicked the couch earning a yelp from the elf, who took the hint and went off. He grabbed Cassandra's hand and led her outside. The night air was cool and the lake they'd built their house next to shimmered in the moonlight.

"Have I ever told you that you chose an excellent location for our house?" Rorick asked.

"Only every time we go swimming." She said with a laugh. Rorick kissed her softly before sitting on the bench by the water.

"What did you want to talk about?" Rorick asked. She sat down with a sigh and looked at her hands for a few moments.

"What was your relationship with your father like?" She asked. Rorick was surprised at the question.

"That was rather sudden."

"Well I have been thinking on it for a while."

"My Father and I had a very good relationship for what is was." He ran his hands on the back of his neck as he sighed. "It was Lady Trevelyan who had a problem with me."

"Why do you never call her your mother?" She asked.

"Because she's not. I'm a bastard." Rorick said. Cassandra's eyes went wide and her jaw nearly unhinged.

"You're what?"

"I'm the son of Lord Alec Trevelyan and a woman he met in Kirkwall." He said. It was really quiet for a moment. "But nobility is passed down from the father so I'm still a Trevelyan."

"So you're not her son?"

"No."

"She doesn't like you because of that?"

"No she doesn't like me because my father passed on control of the family to me when Lady Trevelyan dies. When she passes away I will be the head of the Trevelyan family, at least until I give it to my sister Lilly."

"You have a sister?" Cassandra asked.

"Yes, I had two and an older brother but they both died on the same night as my father."

"What happened?"

"Most of my family are Circle and Templar supporters. Mages weren't happy about that so after the rebellion started they attacked my family estate. Lady Trevelyan, my sister Lilly, and I were the only survivors. Our estate was burned to the ground, our servants killed and we lost all our collective wealth." Rorick said.

Cassandra held her stomach for a moment in silence. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you. But it's in the past. And I will give credit where it's due. Lady Trevelyan in the past few years has re-established the Trevelyan family as a noble power. Even at the cost of an Inquisition alliance."

"She tried to ally with the Inquisition?"

"Yes." He cracked his neck even thinking about that. "It was fortunate you weren't there."

"And after that you have a meeting with Lady Saphira of Jader, who is-." Josephine started but she noticed he wasn't paying attention. "Inquisitor?" She asked.

"Josephine, please postpone all of my meetings until tomorrow, send my apologies and bring Cullen and Leliana back in here when you return." Rorick said. He made his way to the throne and sat down. Josephine looked at the woman who made her way into the main hall. She defiantly carried herself as nobility, but Josephine didn't recognize her. She bowed and excused herself.

"I had wished to speak privately." She announced.

"I want to make this as public as possible." Rorick told her. A few more minutes passed until the advisors returned. Not a word had been said. "You may state your reason for coming."

"I am Lady Esmeralda Trevelyan, current head of the Trevelyan family." She gave a short bow to the others who reciprocated. "And I wish to offer our support to the Inquisition. Financially, publically, and any other assistance we can offer." She kept her straight face. Josephine and Leliana both cracked smiles as they thought of what a huge boon that would be.

"And what would the catch be?" Rorick asked. Both of them kept their straight faces.

"What makes you think there would be a catch?" She asked.

"Let's call it a hunch." A silence fell between the two.

"My only condition is that you end your godless relationship with that Nevarran whore, the Pentaghast."

Every eye in the main hall widened at the same time and Rorick nearly shot out of the throne. Leliana turned red and it took every ounce of her strength to keep silent. A few more minutes of silence and Rorick calming himself down passed. Finally he stood up.

"The Inquisition seeks allies that will help us stand against the chaos and darkness sweeping over our world. We do not seek to be bought by a dying noble house seeking to make a power play." Rorick told her. Lady Trevelyan gave a short bow before turning to leave. "And you have the gall to call my relationship godless when all of the Free Marches knows you fucked every living thing in our house after you kicked my father out of the house?" Leliana started taking notes.

"Your father made his choice." She told him. Even amidst the accusations she kept her demeanor.

"To do the right thing!" He told her. "You on the other hand were so steeped in an imaginary game that you took every offer given to you."

"Nobility is a game." She said. "And you lost."

"Nobility is a responsibility. It is a promise to help those you can."

"Those were his words weren't they?" She asked with a sneer.

"Yes they were."

"And you think rolling that Pentaghast whore will make you any better than me?" Rorick balled his fists until his knuckles were white. "Do not delude yourself; they are nothing but necrophiliacs with no sense of self-worth. You do your family shame, Reginald."

"Your family is not my family. And my name is Rorick that's what _he_ named me." He growled. He turned away and strode into the war room. "Now get out of Skyhold."

The silence had built itself between Cassandra and Rorick. Rorick hadn't divulged the story of what happened but Cassandra wasn't eager to hear it.

"Why did you ask about my relationship with my father?" Rorick finally asked.

"Because there was a happier piece of news I wanted to share." Cassandra said. She had been sitting on the bench, hugging her knees as the breeze rolled through the lake.

"Then by all means share it." Rorick told her, he himself had relaxed a bit and had his arm on the back of the bench.

"Do you remember when I told you I was feeling uneasy, a few days ago?" She asked.

"Yes, you said it was your stomach wasn't it?"

Cassandra nodded. "It had been happening for a few weeks. Well when I went into town this week I went to a healer. I had originally thought it was a simple cold, seeing how the weather was turning." Rorick nodded in agreement. "But the healers did some tests and found something out." Cassandra tried to keep a straight face but the smile pulled her lips to hard and she sat smiling as Rorick held her hands.

"And what was it?" He asked. She started to tear up as she kept smiling.

"I'm pregnant." She said quietly. Rorick's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. Cassandra let her smile grow larger as a few tears fell. Rorick's jaw finally closed into a huge smile.

"You're pregnant?!" He asked excitedly. Cassandra could only nod because she couldn't hold in her laughs and tears anymore. Rorick hugged her tightly as she happily wept. He himself felt a few tears fall. "You're going to be a mother!" He said excitedly.

"And you a father." She said. "Thank you for being so supportive." She said as she wiped her eyes.

"Of course I'd be supportive! We're going to be parents!"

"But I don't know how to be a mother, my own mother died when I was very young. I was raised mostly by Anthony."

"Okay two things, number one: do you think any one of our friends is going to let you raise that baby alone?" He asked. He still had his giddy smile and held her hands gently. She had to concede the point.

"Leliana will make a wonderful Aunt. Even if I don't ask her to." She said.

"And number two: I've played every parental role when my sister was ill, I'll do everything with you. I won't let you go it alone. I promise."

"I believe you." She said. They took a few minutes to regain their composure before slipping back into the party. The party wound down and one by one people started to leave. Soon only The Iron Bull, Varric, Sera, Cole and Blackwall remained. Cassandra excused herself and left for bed, Rorick stayed to play a few more hands of Wicked Grace.

"So where did you two slip off to?" Varric asked. He was usually very busy, the fact that he could come was a big deal. Rorick just gave a small smirk.

"We just needed to get some air." He said.

"Scared, but thrilled. Excitement rattling my bones. Will he be happy, yes? No. Yes. That smile. Same as before when he lifted my veil." Cole said.

"Yep, that was it." Rorick said happily.

"Mmm, Rorick?" Cassandra asked. She raised her head off the couch but only found a blanket on her and pillow under her. There was a note next to her.

"Bull and Sera asked for help, they found a crate of my things. Be back soon." A sketch of a small smiling face was at the bottom of the page. Cassandra sighed and rubbed her stomach. It had been nearly 4 months since she had told him and there were clear signs. The bucket next to the couch was one such clear sign. A sign she greatly appreciated a few moments later. She also noticed the elfroot mixture next to her head.

"He thought of everything." She said with a smile. A few sips and she was ready to fall asleep again.

"How much further?" Sera whined.

"Not far." Bull answered.

"That's what you said an hour ago!" Sera told him.

"We ran around the entirety of Southern Thedas for 3 years why are you complaining?" Rorick asked.

"Is not a good week fer me!" Sera told him, throwing him a nasty glare.

"Say no more." Rorick said. "How's Skyhold been treating you and the Chargers Bull?"

"Pretty well, The Chargers help train the soldiers, we get board and drinks. It's a great system. And Red still uses the base for her spies and birds."

"Sounds good."

"Although the kid is acting weird." Bull said.

"Cole always acts weird."

"Yeah but this is different." They approached the house and Bull helped unload the cart. "He hasn't shut up about the time you and Cassandra slipped off. He keeps saying there were voices."

"Like what?"

"Well he keeps saying 'voices, humming because they can't speak, swimming happily."

"Wait," Rorick asked. "Voices? As in plural?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Do you remember anything specifically?"

"Yeah that there were two voices singing Cassandra's song. But I wasn't really paying attention."

"Two?!" Rorick asked. "Two?!"

"Yeah two." Bull said suspiciously

"It's a number, comes after one!" Sera told him. Rorick kept panting a smile kept growing.

"Boss?"

"CASSANDRA!" He shouted as he ran in. Cassandra bolted upright and looked around.

"What's wrong?" She asked rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Cole said two!" Rorick said.

"What?"

"Cole knows."

"Okay, that's not shocking."

"Cole said two." He said quietly. It dawned on Cassandra and her hands immediately went to her stomach.

"There are two?" She asked with a smile. Bull and Sera finally came into the house to see Cassandra and Rorick in a crying mess on the floor.

"What the hell?" Bull said.

"SHE'S PREGGERS!" Sera shouted pointing at her large belly.

"You're having twins?!" Bull asked. The two crying on the floor could only nod. Bull laughed raucously as Sera giggled. They soon joined the Trevelyan's place on the floor giving support where they could. But to Rorick and Cassandra, they were just enjoying that their family got that much bigger.

"What shall we name them?" Cassandra asked holding the little girl. It had been an arduous process but the end result was worth it.

"I had ideas." Rorick admitted holding the little boy.

"What were they?"

"We name this one Anthony Alec Trevelyan." He told her. "And that one will be Justice Lilly Trevelyan."

"Names for those we lost?" Cassandra said.

"Something like that."

"I love them." She kissed him as they each cradled one child. They promised them then and there, that they would be a brighter generation.


End file.
